Chapter 159 The Reasons for Failure

He bent down and rummaged through his basket, finally pulling out a small box. After washing it several times, he handed the boy a strawberry slightly larger than a quail egg. "Here, have a taste!"

Red skin and black seeds, they looked alright, but they were really too small. But when I took one and popped it into my mouth, the sweet and sour taste instantly stimulated my taste buds. The texture and flavor were so much better than the big strawberries I had carefully prepared.

"Wow, this is delicious! What kind of variety is this? I've never seen it in the market before!"

"Hmph, you only shop at supermarkets or imported boutiques. You wouldn't buy local fruit. Don't let its small size fool you; it's sweet, sour, and juicy. It's only because of the low yield and the competition from the big strawberry that you rarely see it in local markets anymore!"

"It's such a shame that such delicious strawberries can't be grown on a large scale!"

As she ate the strawberries, Yunxia's lips curled up slightly, and she snatched the box away, saying, "This is for making strawberry jam, not for you to eat as a snack!"

"Huh? Are you sure you want to use such good fruit to make jam?"

"Of course, once they're fully cooked, they're perfect for making sauce."

After saying that, he turned around and got busy. He removed the stems, washed the strawberries, and dried them. He put water and rock sugar in the bottom of the pot, and after the water boiled, he added the strawberries, stirring and crushing them at the same time, adding some crushed rock sugar from time to time, and simmered them until they were thick and served.

"Xiaxia, the steps you took to make jam are different from what's written in the book." The key issue is that you didn't add lemon juice, which prevents you from locking in the original flavor of the ingredients.

The girl waved her hand dismissively and said, "Li Chen, don't rely too much on books. Making jam is just like cooking home-style dishes. The amount and order of the various seasonings and side dishes are all up to personal preference. As long as it tastes good, that's all that matters. If you don't believe me, let's taste it together after the jam cools down."

After thinking it over for a moment, the boy nodded in agreement, put the two freshly made jars of jam in the refrigerator, and then took out the carefully prepared imported fruits for the girl to taste.

"The apples are large and plump, crisp, sweet and juicy; the cherries have an appealing color and a rich flavor; the kiwis are perfectly firm and have a sweet and sour taste..."

After praising each variety one by one, Yunxia finally uttered a devastating remark, "Unfortunately, none of them are suitable for making jam."

Upon hearing this, the smile on the boy's face slowly disappeared, and he said dejectedly, "Could it be that the fruit I chose wasn't good enough? Next time I go to the store, I'll definitely ask the salesperson to bring out the best fruit."

Seeing that the young man was not going to listen, Yun Xia shook her head helplessly and said, "Li Chen, you've gone down the wrong path. The fruits that are selected from one in ten thousand are meant to be given as gifts to show off. But you've gone and used them to make jam. To make jam, you either have to choose the sweetest or the sourest ingredients. You've chosen the wrong raw materials, and you've been using the same steps every time you make jam, so the product is bound to be a bit off."

The dejected boy sighed, "I see. So, what do you suggest we do?"

"Hehe, since we still have some time, I'll take you to the farmers' market!"

Li Chen had never been to the vegetable market before. Upon hearing this, his eyes lit up. He called Zhang Ge to drive the car, unloaded the fruit, picked up the basket, and drove to the vegetable market.

As noon approached, the market was less crowded, and the hot weather had wilted many of the vegetables. Their appearance was nowhere near as good as those in supermarkets with proper preservation. The boy pinched his nose, tiptoed, and walked along the dark blue brick road.

"Xiaxia, do you buy all the vegetables you eat every day in an environment like this?"

You don't even need to look at his expression; just by listening to his tone, you can tell how much the boy dislikes this place.

"Li Chen, you don't understand. The vegetables in the supermarket are pretty much the same today as they are tomorrow or the day after. What you buy may have been sitting there for three days. But the farmers' market is different. The vegetables are picked overnight and delivered early in the morning. You can tell at a glance whether they are fresh or not. Some people who are not well-off specifically choose wilted vegetables to save a lot of money!"

This was the first time the boy had heard such a statement. His eyes widened, and his gaze toward the vegetable stall was no longer one of disdain. He even mustered his courage and stepped forward to examine the freshness of the vegetables.

Yunxia pulled him to the fruit stand, walked around a few times, and spotted a bunch of old pears. They were small, extremely sour, and very sandy. They were only two pounds for one cent, a fair price, so she bought them all for him.

"82 jin, 4 yuan will do."

While packing the pears, the boy took a bite and immediately his face contorted in disgust at the sourness. "Xiaxia, these pears are sour and astringent! Don't buy them! You can't eat them! And they're too sandy, they're not suitable for making jam at all!"

These words angered the stall owner, who retorted, "Young man, if you don't know your stuff, don't talk nonsense. The fruit from a hundred-year-old tree is worthless in your mouth."

"Hey, don't be angry. He's still young and doesn't understand these things. We'll have to go to the herbal medicine shop later to buy some ingredients, brew it up, and let him taste it. I guarantee he won't have a single word of disapproval after that."

Upon hearing this, the stall owner was no longer angry. While packing the pears, he smiled and said, "Oh, young lady, you know your stuff! A spoonful of pear syrup and half a cup of warm water will keep you refreshed all summer long!"

"That's right, it's something that soothes the lungs, relieves coughs, cools and reduces internal heat, something you should always have on hand all year round. I'm all packed now, see you later!" With that, she slung the basket over her shoulder and led the boy away.

"Xiaxia, let me carry you!"

"No need, I'm used to carrying it. I have a knack for it, so it's not tiring at all. If you carry it, tsk tsk, your shoulders will definitely be chafed red in less than half an hour, and in severe cases, you might even have blood streaks."

The young master was delicate and frail, so the young lady dared not let him tire himself out. She quickened her pace and soon arrived at the herbal medicine shop, where she weighed out common medicinal herbs such as lily bulbs, fritillaria cirrhosa, monk fruit, fritillaria bulbs, and ophiopogon japonicus.

"Xiaxia, you know so much, you're simply..." You're my idol!

"Hey, poor kids learn to be independent early. A tiny bottle of pear syrup in the supermarket costs over ten yuan. If you buy the ingredients yourself and make several large jars, it won't cost more than ten yuan. Plus, you can be more at ease making it yourself. Can I borrow your big soup pot? I'll share half of the pear syrup I make with you, okay?"

"Sure, of course! It's good for beauty and skin, my mom will definitely love it."

Yunxia was a woman of action. Seeing that he agreed, she bought some rock sugar and honey, and after returning to the Liu family by car, she began to get busy.

Although pears are an early-maturing variety, they are small in size but have a strong flavor. They also grow on century-old trees and have good medicinal properties. Wash and dry them, then shred them with the peel on. Chop the medicinal herbs and put them in a pot. After the water boils, add the shredded pears and simmer while adding water. When the aroma of the herbs is released and the water turns a soy sauce color, filter out the dregs of the herbs and pears with gauze.

Pour the filtered pear water back into the pot and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. When the pear water has thickened into a paste, add rock sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Turn off the heat and serve.

After finishing everything, the two were covered in sweat, the kitchen was a mess, and the clock on the wall pointed to two o'clock. At this moment, Liu Yunjuan came downstairs to the kitchen door and said, "Hiss, you two... burned the kitchen down?"

Li Chen turned around, pointed to the glass bottle and said, "Mom, Xiaxia and I made some pear syrup. Would you like to make a cup and try it?"

Qiuli ointment?

Ever since his son came to Jiangcheng, he has developed a strong interest in fruit, either juicing it or making jam, and now he's even making pear syrup. However... seeing his focused expression makes me feel very gratified.